Plans for Colorado Springs Gateway Unveiled/COSMIX releases conceptual designs for new Bijou Bridge

Conceptual designs for the new Bijou Bridge - part of the COSMIX project in Colorado Springs - call for acorn-style lighting like the kind already lines the primary streets of the city's downtown. Four 17-ft-tall obelisks will anchor the corners of the bridge, providing a gateway as travelers exit the interstate and approach the bridge.

Conceptual designs for the new Bijou Bridge were unveiled in September, culminating months of collaboration between the Colorado Department of Transportation, the city of Colorado Springs and the Downtown Partnership.

Gov. Bill Owens and other dignitaries - including CDOT Executive Director Tom Norton and Colorado Springs Mayor Lionel Rivera - introduced the plans to the public on Sept. 19.

"Colorado Springs has flourished over the past 40 years and its population has burgeoned with families looking to take advantage of all this beautiful city has to offer," Owens said. "When the Bijou interchange is completed next year, the gateway to downtown Colorado Springs will be an architectural landmark serving people of this city for decades to come."

The ceremony took place at Monument Valley Park, on the southeast side of the Bijou Bridge, overlooking the aging infrastructure of the existing structure. Attendees were presented with a glimpse of what the new Bijou bridge will look like when it is completed late next year.

"After nearly a year of working together, we are excited to present the community with a truly monumental gateway into the downtown area," Norton said.

The new bridge, spanning Monument Creek, the railroad and the widened and improved I-25, will be built as part of CDOT's $150 million Colorado Springs Expansion, the largest highway improvement in the city's history.

The city of Colorado Springs contributed $10 million to COSMIX to pay for its portion of the bridge - spanning the creek and the railroad - as well as the extension of Corporate Drive to North Nevada Avenue.

Four 17-ft-tall obelisks will anchor the corners of the bridge, providing a gateway as travelers exit the interstate and approach the bridge. Bridge abutments along the interstate, railroad and creek will have a stonework facade, extending the historical feel of the Works Progress Administration walls and the archway entrance to Monument Valley Park.

The enhanced Bijou Bridge will feature acorn-style lighting like that already lining the primary streets of downtown Colorado Springs. The lights will extend along Bijou Street from Spruce Street, on the west side of I-25, to the west end of the St. Mary's Cathedral parking lot. Railings along the pedestrian-friendly structure will match pedestrian railings at wheelchair-accessible sidewalk ramps and other locations downtown.

"When visitors arrive at this interchange, they will know they are entering a city that's in touch with its environment, its history and its future," Rivera said.

The costs for the enhancements to the bridges original design will be shared by CDOT, the city of Colorado Springs and the Downtown Partnership.

"This bridge is a true monument to how public and private agencies can work together to better serve their communities while enhancing a very visible community landmark," said Steve Engel, president of the Downtown Partnership board.

The partnership has committed to raising or securing the funds for additional improvements to the interchange, such as enhancements to the sidewalks and attractive additional signage on the bridge monuments.

Preparation work at the Bijou interchange began this month with the closure of the I-25 Bijou on-ramp. Full closure of the bridge will take place on Jan. 2; it will reopen to traffic next fall.

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